A dulcimer is a fretted instrument that most commonly includes three or four strings. The fretting is usually diatonic and spreads along a fingerboard attached to the instrument's body. It became popular in old-time American music in the 1800s. It is believed to have been brought over from Scotland or Ireland and then caught on in the United States as a parlor instrument because its sound is so perfectly suited for small social gatherings. In the 1950s, the dulcimer enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in the U.S., mostly because of an explosion in folk music's popularity. The instrument was introduced to the New York musician culture and spread throughout the 1960s.

The standard method of playing the dulcimer is to place it on one's lap and pluck the strings with your dominant hand. The other hand is used to fret the notes on the fingerboard. To amplify the dulcimer's sound, it can also be played while sitting on a chest of drawers or a table. To fret the notes, you can either press down on all of the strings to produce notes and chords or you can fret only the melody string. Using the second method, the other strings act as drones to the melody string, which is generally fretted by using a short dowel or bamboo rod. This creates an interesting buzz sound on the melody string, while the sound from the drone strings rings clearly.

A number of fretting styles have been used throughout history. There are photos going back decades showing people playing dulcimers with a bow, with the end of the instrument resting in the musician's lap and the headstock sitting on a nearby table. Others have discovered evidence of dulcimers being played similar to guitars, with a strap around the neck holding the instrument near the musician's body. The dulcimer can also be played like a harp, held vertically while plucking each string with the fingertips. Fingerpicking styles can be used to create a distinctive sound, similar to fingerpicking on an acoustic guitar. This allows the musician to experiment with different sounds, such as new chords or arpeggios.

There are a variety of musical styles that can be played on the dulcimer, from folk music to electric dulcimer music. There are now solid-body electric dulcimers to amplify the instrument's sound. Dulcimers can have anywhere from two to twelve strings, with the two-stringed instruments generally being called monochords. A variety of body styles are available, including violin-shaped, rectangular, teardrop, trapezoid, elliptical, fish-shaped, and lute-back models. With a bit of work, a dulcimer can be altered so it can be played with a bow, similar to a violin. Another variation is the courting dulcimer, which is designed to be played by two people during a duet. Courting dulcimers have one large body in the middle, with two fingerboards connected to it. The instrument must be played laying across the lap of the two musicians, hence its name as the "courting" dulcimer.

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Originally posted 2008-12-01 05:58:54. Republished by Old Post Promoter

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Acoustic Musical Instruments, Instrument History, dulcimer

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acoustic guitar, american music, bamboo rod, chest of drawers, distinctive sound, dominant hand, dowel, drone strings, drones, dulcimer, dulcimers, fingerboard, headstock, melody string, music in the 1800s, musici, nearby table, resurgence, social gatherings, york musician